2. Different aspects of leadership

One metaphor which strikes me while I think about leadership is a tree. In this metaphor, the leader is the trunk of the tree, the solid support system while followers, or collaborators, are the leaves who rely on the tree for support and guidance.  Another aspect of a tree is that it does not always have leaves on it which, in the leadership context, would mean that a leader is not always a leader in every situation. As a tree does not always have leaves on its branches to support; there will be times when a leader is a follower instead.

This metaphor is a fairly modern way of looking at leadership, which agrees with my views of contemporary emerging theories rather than the traditional roles of leadership. The newer views of leadership make more sense to me as a student leader rather than the traditional view that leaders control their followers to do whatever they command. I appreciate contemporary views which say that there is interaction between leaders and team members where they can influence one another towards their common goal; where ideas can be shared, critiqued, and used. This is how leadership should be.

A different part of leadership is looking at how the team functions. Being on the orientation leader team is both like a machine and a weather system. On one hand, the orientation leader organization is well ordered, with student directors guiding us orientation leaders, and with faculty members directing those student directors. There are guidelines, expectations, and regular communication to ensure that no one is left behind. However, this organization is also like a weather system because each of us orientation leaders manages our own teams, or labs, of students independently. Therefore, each lab will go differently as each leader chooses the activities that they see fit; but even in this there is some steering from our directors on how we should each lead our team of students.

1. Leaders and Collaborators

Previous to the reading, I would have described a leader solely as a person with a strong, charismatic, and influential personality who inspires others to follow them. I still think that this is somewhat true; however, I realize this is only part of the story. According to ideas written in chapter one of Exploring Leadership, people view leaders in many different ways: from the view I described above to the other far end of the spectrum in which a leader is not a recognized individual but rather a group of individuals working together toward a common goal, with each person contributing equally to the ideas and direction of the group. I think I am settling with a mash-up of both examples where there is a distinguished leader who contributes largely to the group yet receives much counsel and direction from the co-creators in the group.

These thoughts on leadership lead me to consider whether I consider myself a leader or not. Before attending North Central I would have easily responded, “Yes” to this question. Now, however, I am left wondering about this. If I am a leader, am I good leader? By all technical standards, yes, I am a leader. I am an Orientation Leader, a leader of the nursery at my church, a former worship leader, and a leader in friendships. Yet I have put so little thought into the effectiveness of my leadership and my leadership styles that I am left wondering if I am a good leader.

This brings me to realize a few things which I hope to learn through Leadership Development: how do I lead? What is the best method of leadership for me? In what situations is it better that I lead and when is best for me to be a collaborator instead? I know that through my experience of being an Orientation Leader I will be able to grow and hopefully test out new ideas which I learn through this class.